Since members of most companies came from the same area or neighborhood within a given county, personal relationships often played a significant part in getting the mail delivered. Confederate soldiers and family members kept very good track of who was at home and who was with a company at the front, and this statement can be borne out by a careful reading of almost any collection of personal correspondance from a Confederate soldier. Furloughed soldiers were relied upon to deliver letters, money and unneeded clothing to the folks at home and likewise soldiers returning from furlough were evidently sent off loaded down with letters and items intended for their comrades at the front. This is not to say that the Confederate mail service did not carry most of the burden as far as letters were concerned, but just a generalized observation that whenever possible, soldiers perferred to entrust a life long neighbor or relative with their letters and parcels rather than leave it to the care of a stranger.
Greg